California
How do I file for visitation rights in California?
Quick answer
If you already have a family law case, you file a Request for Order (form FL-300) with a Child Custody and Visitation (Parenting Time) Application Attachment (form FL-311) describing the visits you want. If there is no case yet, you open one and can file the FL-300 with the petition, so you get a hearing date.
Researched by Dan Martin, Legal Researcher · Published by Onbello Legal · Last updated October 2026
What the law says
Family Code section 3100(a): “In making an order pursuant to Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 3080), the court shall grant reasonable visitation rights to a parent when it is shown that the visitation would be in the best interest of the child, as defined in Section 3011, and consistent with Section 3020. In the discretion of the court, reasonable visitation rights may be granted to any other person having an interest in the welfare of the child.”
Form FL-311-INFO: “If you already have a family law case, you can ask the court for child custody, visitation (parenting time), and child exchange orders by completing Request for Order (form FL-300) and filing it in the court where your case was started.” It says to give details about when visits should happen, how often, and who will transport the children before and after each visit.
FL-311 item 3 offers five kinds of order: reasonable visitation (which the form says is not appropriate in cases involving domestic violence and substance abuse), a schedule in an attached document, the schedule in item 4, supervised visitation, or no visitation. If visitation is contested, section 3170(a) says the court “shall set the contested issues for mediation.”
- Family Code section 3100 (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov)
- Form FL-311-INFO, What Are Visitation or Parenting Time Orders?, New January 1, 2026 (PDF)
- Form FL-311, Child Custody and Visitation (Parenting Time) Application Attachment, Rev. January 1, 2026 (PDF)
- Family Code section 3170 (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov)
What to do next
FL-300-INFO also lists the UCCJEA declaration (FL-105) among the forms a custody or visitation request may need. Serve your papers at least 16 court days before the hearing under Code of Civil Procedure section 1005(b), plus five calendar days if mailed within California; electronic service adds 2 court days to the notice period (Code of Civil Procedure section 1010.6(a)(3)(B)). If you are a grandparent rather than a parent, different rules apply.
- Form FL-300-INFO, Information Sheet for Request for Order, Rev. January 1, 2026 (PDF)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 1005 (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov)
- Code of Civil Procedure section 1010.6 (leginfo.legislature.ca.gov)
- FL-300, box by box
- How a Request for Order works
- How do I file for custody in California if there’s no court case yet?
- Can grandparents get visitation with their grandkids?
Last checked against the sources above on October 8, 2026.
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This page is general legal information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney–client relationship. Laws and local rules vary and change. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed family-law attorney in your state.
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